A drug called alirocumab may help prevent serious heart problems and even lower the chance of dying from heart disease in people at high risk — but we’re still not totally sure about the life-extending effects because the data is limited.

A drug called Evolocumab helps lower the chance of serious heart problems like heart attacks and strokes in people at high risk — and it seems to work pretty well over about 8 months.

A drug called alirocumab, given as a 75mg shot every couple of weeks, lowered bad cholesterol by almost half in people at high risk for heart problems over six months — a bit less than another similar drug, evolocumab.

For people with serious heart disease who are already taking cholesterol-lowering pills, adding one of two special drugs (evolocumab or alirocumab) can lower their chances of having a major heart problem—like a heart attack—by about 15% over a few years.

These cholesterol drugs can cut bad cholesterol by half and help prevent heart attacks in people with heart disease, and they’re about as safe as a dummy shot—though some might get a little redness where they’re injected.